THE BEGINING: The 1st Rose-Roth Seminar in Vilnius, 16-19 December 1991
The fact, that the First Rose-Roth seminar The Baltic States Security Requirements was held in Vilnius, which lay outside the NATO member states, made it a historic event. This Seminar was the first international parliamentary event where parliamentarians of NATO countries discussed the withdrawal of Russian troops from the Baltic region together with their Baltic and Russian counterparts. The issue under discussion was not whether, but when and how, Russia was to fulfill this duty.
Vilnius in December 1991 was a place of anxiety and uncertainty. Lithuanians long awaited declaration of independence from the Soviet Union has been made the previous year (11 March 1990). However, memories of the violence and loss of life in January 1991 at the hands of Russian special forces were fresh in Lithuanian minds, as was the recently attempted coup in Moscow, which it was believed, would have had dire consequences for Baltic independence had it succeeded. Simon Lunn
ROSE-ROTH PROGRAM. In response to the fall of the Berlin wall at the end of the 1980s, the NATO-PA, former North Atlantic Assembly, broadened its mandate by developing close relations with political leaders in Central and East European Countries. Relations with Central and Eastern European countries have been co-ordinated under the so-called Rose-Roth Initiative, initiated in 1990 by the then President of the Assembly, the US Congressman Charlie Rose and the US Senator Bill Roth. The original goal of the program was to assist partner countries in Central and Eastern Europe through their challenging transition process to democracy after the fall of the Berlin wall, which involved the implementation of difficult political and economic reforms. While some seminars retain this as their central theme, over the years, the program has acquired a regional focus, facilitating dialogue between parliamentarians and other policymakers particularly in the Balkans and the South Caucasus but also in other countries of the Euro-Atlantic region. The program aims to enhance parliamentary awareness, build contacts and provide experience and expertise. Particular attention is paid to promoting the principle of the democratic control of armed forces and to the development of effective parliamentary oversight of defense and the military. The Rose-Roth seminars offer an opportunity to benefit from the experience of Alliance parliamentarians, to understand what role parliaments should play in the defense of their societies, to gain the necessary information to play such a role and to grow closer to an organization of like-minded countries and parliaments. Česlovas Vytautas Stankevičius
